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Medscape
a day ago
- Health
- Medscape
Turbulence in the Oncology Workforce: A Silver Lining
Physicians are in the midst of a tectonic shift in workforce patterns that could have ramifications lasting decades. In a few short months, the current administration has implemented policies that will drastically reduce federal funding for academic science. These massive cuts include hundreds of terminated grants and slashed funding for 'indirect costs' for National Institutes of Health (NIH) research grant recipients. Alongside the federal budget cuts, entire divisions of the NIH and National Science Foundation are also being reorganized. Clinicians at many academic institutions have been advised to prepare for uncertainty, while physicians and scientists have been instructed to restrict research hiring and spending, even terminate staff without existing grants or contracts. On top of that, entire global health programs have been decimated, and 'reduction in force' emails at the FDA, CDC, or Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services have left many experts without a job. However, amid this turbulence and confusion, there's a potential silver lining. The assaults on research funding and government programs may inadvertently help address a major issue: the physician shortage. As many of my colleagues at academic institutions contemplate their next move, I suspect that oncologists may find themselves returning to full-time clinical practice and patient care. And that may not be a bad thing. Prior to the Trump administration's policies, the proportion of clinicians-hours spent seeing patients had declined nearly 8% over a decade. The number of doctors who spent most of their time seeing patients had dropped considerably as well. In fact, a 2024 survey from the American Medical Association found that over 35% of physicians expressed at least some interest in leaving clinical practice altogether. This, coupled with a massive influx of physicians entering retirement, is likely to exacerbate a growing physician shortage problem. But what if more of us now choose to increase our time in the clinic or start practicing full time? For many of my colleagues who cannot sustain a non-clinical career, I think that a return to full-time patient care will be a practical, even enticing move. And considering the shortages of physicians across almost all specialties, including oncology, doctors seeking refuge in clinical practice would be a welcome development. Would I be content with a career that is increasingly more clinical? I think I would be. For me, clinical practice represents the ultimate refuge, the source of stability in a career that could otherwise be ruled by frequent career transitions encountered in the business world. The patient exam room is the one place where I can focus on a one-on-one relationship instead of the hustle and bustle of grant applications and administrative tasks. Since patient care is often a health system's top revenue source, if more oncologists return to full-time practice, we may have more leverage to negotiate solutions that reduce burnout, advance practice providers, or provide greater vacation time. I also suspect that many clinicians who choose to spend more time with patients will do so as part of a medical group or private practice — potentially reversing a decades-long trend of doctors leaving private practice to work as employed physicians. There are several tools that can help physicians make this transition easier. For one, the emergence of ambient artificial intelligence (AI) scribing may curb the exodus from clinical practice by reducing excessive documentation burdens. Instead of hyperbolic claims of AI 'replacing' physicians, I suspect that the AI revolution will simply provide physicians the necessary tools to be more efficient. The growth of telemedicine and remote patient care platforms is another enabling factor. The rise of these virtual clinics means that physicians are no longer limited by geographically boundaries when practicing medicine. Continuing COVID-era policies that allow physicians to practice across state lines would also help. If more physicians contemplate a return to their clinical roots, we have an opportunity to reshape the patient care experience in ways that both serve our communities and that create more sustainable clinical careers. The physician workforce has always been adaptable. Now, if we can find our way back to the exam room, we will bring with us diverse experiences from research, policy, and business that can improve clinical practice. Perhaps the silver lining in today's uncertainty is the chance to rediscover what drew us to medicine in the first place — the profound privilege of caring for patients — while leveraging our broader perspectives to address the systemic issues that drove many away in the first place. The future of healthcare may depend on our ability to transform this moment of professional disruption into one of renewal and recommitment to our core mission.
New York Times
12-06-2025
- Business
- New York Times
Red-State Universities Will Get Hit by Trump's Cuts, Too
A few weeks ago, on social media, President Trump wrote, 'I am considering taking Three Billion Dollars of Grant Money away from a very antisemitic Harvard, and giving it to TRADE SCHOOLS all across our land. What a great investment that would be for the USA.' The message was, presumably, that by going to war with Harvard, he's getting a twofer: sticking it to 'woke' blue-state elites while also making blue-collar workers in red states a priority. He's not wrong that we should invest more in vocational education and do more to improve the economic conditions for working-class Americans. But his joust with Harvard — his moves, in particular, to freeze more than $2 billion in federal research funding and cancel federal contracts with the university — is just the most visible part of a wider assault on institutions of higher learning. Last month, Nature reported that the administration has proposed cutting over $20 billion from the budget for the National Institutes of Health; The Times reported that grants funded by the National Science Foundation were down more than 50 percent compared with the average from 2015 to 2024. Rather than striking a blow for red-state America, these cuts would actually take a heavy toll on many of the communities in states that went for Mr. Trump in the last election — whose research universities serve as crucial anchors for industry and innovation. If Mr. Trump wants to make all of America great again, he shouldn't cut funding for scientific research. He should increase it. According to a recent report, over the past decade, N.I.H. research funding, which in large part is distributed to universities in the form of grants, has helped generate $787 billion for the American economy and an average of more than 370,000 jobs each year. Every dollar of N.I.H.-funded research generates a total of $2.56 in economic activity. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Geek Wire
10-06-2025
- Politics
- Geek Wire
UW President Ana Mari Cauce reflects on decade of growth as she steps down amid funding threats
University of Washington President Ana Mari Cauce at the April 2024 Admitted Student Preview Day. (UW Photo) It hasn't been an easy decade to oversee one of America's leading research institutions and the academic center for Seattle's technology sector. As president of the University of Washington, Ana Mari Cauce navigated the tumultuous COVID-19 shutdowns and transition to remote learning, negotiated with an encampment of Gaza war protesters, and oversaw the controversial move of UW athletics to the Big Ten Conference. But as Cauce steps down from her role this month, potentially even tougher times are ahead for the 165-year-old institution as the Trump administration tries to gut funding for research and pursues international students for deportation while at the same time worries grow that AI will replace college grads in entry-level jobs. In an interview Monday with GeekWire, Cauce said she's often asked to give reassurances that everything will be OK, that the UW will plug all the financial holes, that students won't be targeted by immigration officials. 'People want me to say, 'You're going to be safe,'' Cauce said. 'And you know, we will do everything we can to create a safe environment here, but it's a scary world right now.' The UW boasts world-class, well-funded research efforts, landing nearly $1.8 billion in research grants and contracts in the last fiscal year alone. But that status is at risk under U.S. leadership that aims to withhold dollars and has created bureaucratic hurdles to grant applications, just as the state is struggling with a budget crisis. The university has installed cost-cutting measures to keep work going, but it ultimately can't backfill the massive federal cuts being sought, Cauce said, and that threatens progress on critical diseases including Alzheimer's and cancer. 'Right now, we're at that point where all that slow, steady research is getting ready for a big leap forward,' she said. 'And it would just be so incredibly sad to have that stopped.' Gerberding Hall is home to the UW president's office. (Geekwire Photo / Lisa Stiffler) During her tenure, Cauce has strengthened the UW's academic and research standings. Student enrollment is up 13% across the UW's three campuses, and last fall the school welcomed its most diverse student body to date. The UW raised $6.3 billion from donors in its Be Boundless campaign. Two professors won a Nobel Prize. The UW's lauded Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering more than doubled its enrollment. Cauce, a professor of psychology, joined the UW in 1986. She moved up the leadership ladder, serving as chair of her department; dean of the College of Arts and Sciences; and UW provost and executive vice president, which included the roles of chief academic officer and chief budget officer. When she was appointed president in 2015 — becoming the first female, the first Latina and the first openly gay person to serve in the role — she planned to hold the job for two five-year terms. Seated on a purple velveteen chair among packing boxes stuffed with books, documents, photos and a slew of Husky-themed knickknacks, Cauce admits that she has been hoping for world events to get 'a little boring.' But she also acknowledges that the tumult of recent years can trigger positive reforms. 'It's important to keep in mind that change also offers opportunity, that when everything is humming along, there is little impetus for change,' she said. It has made her think about defining campus diversity more broadly to include students from rural populations, and to realize that more needs to be done to recruit men to the UW as colleges in general attract disproportionately more women. With budgets under attack, Cauce said universities must do a better job communicating to the public the significant benefits of research. They need to clearly explain that diversity and merit are not in opposition to each other when it comes to admissions. 'It is important to be clear about who we are, and this is pushing us to be clearer … about what our values are,' she said. After a decade leading the University of Washington, President Ana Mari Cauce is packing up her office for retirement from the role. (GeekWire Photo / Lisa Stiffler) Those challenges will soon fall to the UW's incoming president, Robert J. Jones, who is completing a nine-year tenure as chancellor of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Jones is an agronomist and crop physiologist, and his career has included spearheading university initiatives in engineering, science, technology and medicine. Under Jones' guidance, the UW will need to articulate the benefits of earning a college degree among the warnings of the coming 'AI job apocalypse' that some say will eliminate swaths of employment, including low-level roles and jobs in the tech sector. Cauce said the UW has a strong value proposition. Even as students pursue studies in technical fields such as mechanical engineering or computer science, she said, they're also learning communications and critical thinking skills. 'You're learning how to learn,' Cauce said. 'And so we really are preparing them for the fact that the world will be changing enormously.' Before her big transition, Cauce's next step is delivering the commencement address at Saturday's graduation ceremonies plans at Husky Stadium. Then she's taking a well-deserved sabbatical — her last one was in 1989 — that will include winding down, cleaning her basement, writing and visiting her niece and nephew's children in California, while also remaining available to support Jones. Reflecting on what she has loved about leading the UW and her impact on the institution, she pointed to strengthening a university environment that embraces basic research and interdisciplinary collaboration that are key to innovation. She noted the solid leaders in place, including at UW Medicine and the appointment of Tricia Serio as UW provost two years ago. 'No one accomplishes anything in a university this size by themselves,' she said. 'It really is about facilitating good things happening … and that is all about building [a] team and building culture.' UW President Ana Mari Cauce's office in the Gerberding Building overlooks the university's Central Plaza, which is more commonly known as Red Square. (GeekWire Photo / Lisa Stiffler)
CBS News
09-06-2025
- Business
- CBS News
Johns Hopkins, University of Maryland seeks to join Harvard lawsuit against Trump administration over federal funding
Johns Hopkins University seeks to join Harvard lawsuit against Trump over funding cuts Johns Hopkins University seeks to join Harvard lawsuit against Trump over funding cuts Johns Hopkins University seeks to join Harvard lawsuit against Trump over funding cuts Johns Hopkins and the University of Maryland are trying to join 16 other universities in backing Harvard's legal battle with the Trump administration over federal funding. The two filed a brief on Friday, arguing that the cuts will disrupt ongoing research. This comes after months of the administration cutting funding for dozens of schools. So far, that brief is unopposed. JHU loses research funding Johns Hopkins has made adjustments after losing millions in federal funding. In April, the university said it lost more than $800 million from USAID grant terminations. Since January, Hopkins said, 90 grants have ended with the loss of $50 million in federal research funding. This led the university to lay off more than 2,200 workers globally, implement a hiring freeze, and pause annual pay increases. The university said it would also reduce the number of research projects and cut back spending in certain areas. University of Maryland faces cuts At the University of Maryland College Park, more than 40 research grants and contracts worth about $12 million were canceled due to federal cuts targeting diversity, equity, and inclusion programs. The University of Maryland, Baltimore laid off 30 full-time staff and eliminated 30 vacant positions after cuts to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and other research funding. UMB also announced a "modest salary reduction" that they said would impact about 1,000 employees, including university leadership, primarily at the medical school. In response to the cuts, the University System of Maryland voted to authorize potential furloughs and temporary salary reductions for university employees. What about Harvard's legal battle? In April, the Trump administration froze $2.2 billion in grant funding after the school refused to comply with President Trump's list of demands that followed an investigation into the school's handling of alleged antisemitism during pro-Palestinian protests last year. Harvard is one of 60 universities nationwide being investigated.
Forbes
03-06-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Tammy Baldwin Reveals How Democrats May Stop Massive Trump-Backed 40% Cut In NIH Funding
On "Forbes Newsroom," Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) discussed Democrat's plan to prevent a massive 40% cut in NIH research funding pushed by President Trump, and what she and Senate Democrats are doing to take on steep program reductions in the GOP reconciliation bill. Watch the full interview above.
